Sindh vows to continue op despite all odds

KARACHI - The Sindh government has reiterated that the targeted operation will continue till elimination of last criminal from Karachi as the Sindh and federal governments are determined to take this operation till its final destination rather surrendering to any pressure.Chairing a meeting to review the LEAs performance especially with reference to the ongoing targeted operation on Wednesday, Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah once again expressed apprehension over hindrances in the targeted operation due to illegal cell phone SIMs.He said the databases of 40,000 SIMs were examined only to investigate one case of martyred police officer SSP Chaudhry Aslam. The slow pace of proceedings of the criminal cases, challaned in the courts, was another problem to get the criminals convicted. “Convictions to the criminals were the deterrence for the LEAs in targeted operation and we must consider this severity.”Qaim formed two members committee comprised on Advocate General and Prosecutor General of Sindh to approach the judiciary for speedy disposal of challaned cases, pending from September 5, 2013, regarding the targeted operation for which government has sanctioned five more Anti Terrorism Courts. The chief minister appreciated the determination shown by the LEAs for fighting against the terrorists at the cost of their lives just to protect the citizens. This operation was jointly launched by the federal government and the provincial government with consultation of all the political parties and stakeholders to fight against terrorists, kidnappers and extortionists without any discrimination. He added the Sindh government and the LEAs are still working within their mandate and no one will be allowed to surpass the law. The CM said democracy was running in the Centre and the province and there was no space for victimisation in a democratic government. Qaim said the terrorists, banned organisations and other outfits, after their defeat in the streets, now were designing other strategies to divert the attention of the people to jeopardise the operation and the efforts of federal and provincial government for maintaining law and order in Karachi. “The Sindh government is very much aware of that and has decided to thwart such nefarious designs with full force and keeping the people aware of the facts,” he added. He said the Sindh government and the LEAs were experiencing some bottlenecks with reference to carry on the targeted operation in the City and now the Sindh government is considering adopting a mechanism to resolve such issues with immediate effect. Qaim stressed upon the officers of investigation and prosecution branches to establish close coordination among them on the pattern of Sindh Police and Rangers. He said the Sindh government was investing huge amount to the strength of the Sindh Police by equipping it with latest weapons, APCs, bulletproof vehicles, helmet and vests and enabling them to fight against terrorists with full force. “After the targeted operation, the crime rate has been declined and confidence of the citizens, business community has been resorted. Betterment in investment and business activities has also been witnessed. “We have invested a lot. We have controlled crime at considerable level and would not leave it in half way but to take it to final destination.”Additional IG Police Karachi Shahid Hayat said, “After the comparative study of present crime rate with its corresponding period, we will find big decline in the crime rate after the targeted operation.” He said 192 accused had been challaned in 169 cases in the ATCs while 8,297 criminals were challaned in 6,429 cases in other courts. He said 144 criminals had been convicted in different cases while 3,485 criminals were granted bail by different courts. Similarly, the meeting was briefed that 1,697 accused were arrested by the Rangers. Out of the 1,628 handed over to Sindh Police, 936 criminals were under trail and 280 were under investigation of the Rangers. The meeting was also informed that 67 criminals were with the Rangers for 90 days detention under the PPO. The Prosecutor General Sindh informed the meeting that 14 cases have been decided during January 2014 out of which conviction has been made in seven cases including the death sentence in one case.